I agree with the New Orleans Saints Jimmy Graham is a tight end. New Orleans Saints All-Pro Jimmy Graham is the best tight end who could be available next month when free agency begins, but he’s not the Graham Texans fans are focused on. The New Orleans S… (more)aints will use their franchise tag on star tight end Jimmy Graham before Monday's deadline, a league source told ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter. The move was expected but it will likely set off a groundbreaking battle over whether Graham should officially be considered a tight end or a wide receiver. The Saints own Graham's rights, can designate him as their franchise player the next two seasons and there's little recourse for Graham other than not signing the paperwork. Graham's camp, though, could potentially gain the upper hand by filing a grievance with the league over the tight end/wide receiver designation and turning the debate over to an arbitrator. With the top cap numbers currently belonging to Mike Wallace , Andre Johnson , Percy Harvin , Calvin Johnson , DeSean Jackson , the average would have been $14.4 million $2.1 million more than the non-exclusive tag of $12.3 million.

10 things to know about the Jimmy Graham franchise tag

Now that the Saints have applied the franchise tag to tight end Jimmy Graham, plenty of things can happen over the next four months or so. Here are 10 things to know about the situation, which could get more and more interesting as time goes by. 1. The …

Jimmy Graham confirms he’s been tagged

All signs have been pointing to the Saints using their franchise tag on tight end Jimmy Graham for some time and now it’s official. Graham took to Twitter on Friday afternoon to pass along the word that the team had informed him of their decision to use…

Free agency forecast for New Orleans Saints' players: analysis

Photos: NFL tight ends on the free-agent market

New Orleans Saints All-Pro Jimmy Graham is the best tight end who could be available next month when free agency begins, but he’s not the Graham Texans fans are focused on. Garrett Graham emerged in 2013, stepping up when starter Owen Daniels was lost f…

Looming franchise-tag fight has silver lining for Saints

As the Saints and tight end Jimmy Graham prepare for an inevitable showdown on the question of whether Graham is a tight end or receiver for franchise-tag purposes, the Saints have some good news. The Saints apparently won’t be risking an outcome that i…

Saints apply non-exclusive tag to Graham

Two years ago, the Saints used the exclusive franchise tag on quarterback Drew Brees. The higher investment (more on that later) prevented another team from signing Brees to an offer sheet that the Saints couldn’t or wouldn’t match, pilfering Brees for …